Stonehaven Fireballs is one of Scotland’s most dramatic New Years and Hogmanay fire festivals. At least 12,000 spectators line the event route, and the party continues through January 1.
What to expect
At midnight on December 31, in the North Sea coastal town of Stonehaven, at least 45 strong Scots, most in kilts, light up the street by circling and shooting jets of sparks into the crowd.
The festivities begin with street entertainment around 11pm with a band of pipers, followed by some very wild drums. Just before midnight, a lone piper takes fireball swingers downtown to the familiar varieties of Scotland the Brave .
The watching crowd counts down the final seconds before the new year, and then, to the accompaniment of wild cheers, the Stonehaven Fireball Swingers raise their flaming balls, attached to long wire handles, and begin swinging them over their heads.
Swinging their fireballs all the time, the protesters, guided by the piper, traverse the city center from Market Cross to the harbor and when they get tired of swinging them, the protesters throw them into the sea. When the last ball of fire cuts through the sky and into the sea, the show ends with a huge fireworks display.
How it all began
Stonehaven was once a small fishing village on the coast, about 15 miles from Aberdeen. The festival likely grew out of a local 19th century ritual practiced by fishermen from the original village of Old Stonehaven. While the records are spotty, the use of purifying flames to ward off evil spirits and bring luck to the fishing fleet is likely to have pre-Christian origins.
At one point, only those born in the Stonehaven neighborhood could participate. In the 1960s, when the festival began to decline, the rules changed, and today, anyone who has lived in Stonehaven for a period of time and has served as a Fireball quarterback for at least one festival can apply to participate. Unlike the Allendale Tar Barl in England, which is a men-only affair, many women march with the Stonehaven Fireball Swingers – women of some years are the only ones wearing pants.
Today, Fireball swingers make their own fireballs by filling wire baskets with a mixture of flammable materials. Participants keep their recipes a secret, but the goal is to create a fireball that will stay lit and burn for a long time.
Watch online
Stonehaven has a live webcam located in the harbor where the festival ends, as all the fire baskets are thrown into the sea. Online watchers can watch the end of the procession by clicking on the Stonehaven Harbor webcam on New Year’s Eve. The procession generally arrives at the port about 15 to 20 minutes after midnight.
Essential information
The Stonehaven Fireballs take place at midnight on New Years Eve in Stonehaven, Scotland. Admission is free. Stonehaven is about 15 miles south of Aberdeen along the A90 coastal road. There are train services to get there, but none on New Years Day to return, so your best option is to take the local bus service. The Bluebird stagecoach operates buses between Aberdeen and Stonehaven.
If you don’t want to drive or wait for the start of bus services the next morning (after 4am), you can reserve a room at Stonehaven. For a relatively small town, you have quite a few places to stay, but book early because they’re all likely to be full on New Years Eve, and the prices are four to five times the normal price.
